To achieve precise printing of materials by inkjet printing through nozzles, the nozzle holes must be about 25 microns wide or smaller. Ink or other liquid printed necessarily must be capable of passing through such holes repeatedly without leaving residue, which blocks the holes, or without otherwise blocking the holes.
Precision printing of epoxy materials can be important to make, for example, customized electrical circuits or decorative patterns by inkjet printing. The customized patterns, which may be text or a product code, for example, is readily varied using the electronic controls of modern printers. The epoxy compound is applied as a lamination with another material with which it polymerizes, such as an amine or amide.
This invention is directed to printing epoxy compounds using thermal expulsion of the ink by vaporizing the ink. The primary liquid of the ink is water. The typical epoxy materials of interest for such printing is not soluble in water and, if emulsified in water with current technology, would be in large particle size with high viscosity that would not pass through or would block such nozzle holes in a short duration of printing.
Accordingly, a need exists to emulsify in water epoxy compounds in small sizes of about 300 nanometers in diameter or less and with reasonable viscosity.